Just in case you are suffering from a bout of insomnia, then this will help cure you.
“An AntiPattern is a pattern that tells how to go from a problem to a bad solution. (Contrast to an AmeliorationPattern, which is a pattern that tells how to go from a bad solution to a good solution.)
Identifying bad practices can be as valuable as identifying good practices.
A good AntiPattern also tells you why the bad solution looks attractive (e.g. it actually works in some narrow context), why it turns out to be bad, and what positive patterns are applicable in its stead.
Accordingly to JimCoplien: an anti-pattern is something that looks like a good idea, but which backfires badly when applied.
It’s not fun documenting the things that most people agree won’t work, but it’s necessary because many people may not recognize the AntiPattern. [NOTE: Some discussion of this on ThreadMode, ProblemsWithDocumentation, etc. Look around, plenty of hand-wringing over this.]
In the old days, we used to just call these ‘bad ideas’. The new name is much more diplomatic. ”
(Reference: Full List of Authors)
Anti Patterns Catalog: “Anti Patterns Catalog”